Duty
by mous1elousi3
Summary: If Lady Yao does not explain the duties of the emperor's wife to the new bride, who will?


_**A/N: An old piece, polished for publication.**_

_**Disclaimer: Fullmetal Alchemist is the property of Hiromu Arakawa et al and in no way am I going to profit from trying to publish this, like are you kidding me?**_

"**Duty"**

"It is in the best interest of the clan and this country that you are with child as soon as possible," says Lady Yao at tea.

Lan Fan nearly chokes on hers, then quickly sets it down and wills her face not to redden in her embarrassment. It is a losing battle, it has been more than two months since the wedding and she still blushes. She ignores Princess Chang's laughter as she replies, "My lord has said that there is no hurry. He wants us to—"

Lady Yao cuts her off with a look, and says, "My son, may heaven's blessings follow him all his days, may look wise but he is young still. Your duties may have changed but you still have them, and for now it is to look pretty at his side, help him relax when he visits your chambers and to bear children. I thought we went over this before the wedding?"

Lan Fan feels her hackles rising but she suppresses her irritation with a thin-lipped smile and repeats, "My lord has said that there is no hurry." She takes a deep breath, releases it slowly and says, "I understand your concerns… but we have so much to do. There is the issue of establishing the trade agreement with Aerugo, the expansion of the Xing-Amestris railway, and the Han and Fong clans are—"

Again, Lady Yao interrupts; her gaze so much like her son's that she effectively silences the young empress once more. "What is all this about Aerugo and Amestris and warring clans? Every single one of them are matters for His Majesty to settle not you, His Majesty never had need for your assistance before."

Lan Fan protests, "My lord has requested my opinion as he always has; it is only now that he has chosen to do so openly—"

"Your only concern is bearing him a healthy heir," says Lady Yao, firmly. "They have always said that you have too much _yang_ in your _qi_. Your place in not in discussing matters of the nation but in the managing of the household of the Imperial Palace. It is unheard of—"

This time it is Princess Chang who interrupts, saying, "Lady Yao, His Majesty is known for seeking the lady's counsel on matters of state. I hardly think he would be pleased if she suddenly stopped doing so. This is a new era in Xing, remember, the emperor wishes to listen to the will of the people before he acts, so that he might better serve them. The last thing he wants is a return to the old ways."

Lady Yao looks as if she is desperately fighting the urge to scowl at this, but says evenly, "Be that as it may, no wife's position is secure until there is a child, and so His Majesty's claim is tenuous at best until he can secure his line. Do not pretend that any of the clans are satisfied with the current situation. The poorer clans may have welcomed the protection of the Yao for we have always been wealthy and well-armed, but the wealthier clans are not so easily appeased. They want a claim to the throne and though they fear His Majesty's secret weapon, they are not above attacking by other means. If you were to die, Your Highness, before you bear a child, what do you think they would do? How long before they would appear at the gates with their daughters? One clan sent a daughter to be your maid on your honeymoon!"

Now it is Lan Fan's turn to scowl, unused to concealing her emotions as her husband and his mother. The Liu girl had been both too naïve and too bold to understand the danger she was in. Of course, it was not as if she truly had a chance. The emperor had not let his new wife leave their marriage bed for some four days.

She blushes crimson at the memory. If ever Lan Fan has doubted the depth of Emperor Yao's affection, especially after his unexpected declaration of love one night as he went over the letters from their Amestrian friends, his almost insatiable ardour for her since has quickly dispelled all such notions. Quite frankly, Lady Yao has nothing to worry about. The day the emperor decides that it is time for them to have a child there would soon be a happy announcement. Why, just the night before he had snuck into her room and woke her with a kiss and he did not leave until it was almost time for her maids to rouse her.

"Another thing," begins Lady Yao, bringing Lan Fan from her thoughts. "About your arm, don't you think it is time for a less aggressive model? After all, you are no longer required to guard His Majesty with your life."

And leave herself unarmed, excuse the pun, in the face of potential enemies? Is she supposed to just sit there and wait for rescue? She can still fight one-handed, and there are the bombs and knives but significantly less than she likes. To give up her arm would be tantamount to suicide. Not a chance.

"As you have been saying, my enemies are many. I was once my lord's personal guard, it would bring no end of shame to myself, my family and my grandfather's spirit if I were to be taken by surprise," said Lan Fan.

"Do you doubt the ability of your uncle and the Imperial Guard?" asked Lady Yao, arching a brow.

"No, but I have seen assassins get past guards before," said Lan Fan, shrugging.

Lady Yao gives her a look of barely repressed irritation. Lan Fan can imagine that she is not accustomed to anyone fighting her, certainly not Fu's shy, unruly runt of a granddaughter. The lady expects her new daughter-in-law to kowtow to her as she once did. The lady is mistaken then. Emperor Yao told his new wife himself, "The empress bows to no one."

Of a sudden, there are sounds of commotion. Lan Fan does not have to try very hard to identify the _qi_. Her face reddens through she makes a valiant effort to fight the blush. The emperor is coming.

Princess Chang gives her a knowing smile but Lady Yao only frowns. Surely the lady is thinking that given the lifetime they knew each other before and the three and a half months from the commencing of the official courtship and marriage, that Lan Fan should be over her excitement at seeing her husband. It cannot be helped, unlike the lady, Lan Fan's husband chose her for love and not duty.

Emperor Yao appears in magnificent robes in colours chosen for good fortune in business, warding off evil spirits and reinforcing his authority, especially important given his twenty-one years. In comparison, Lan Fan is adorned in colours that highlight her pale skin, and celebrate her beauty, femininity and fecundity. Her husband heads directly for her on entering the pavilion, takes her hands in his and pulls her to her feet. And then he kisses her, deeply and without embarrassment or care for his mother, sister and the attendants. To her credit, Lan Fan gives as good as she gets.

When he finally breaks the kiss though, Lan Fan feels weak on her feet and warm from the roots of her hair to the tips of her toes. She knows that she will see him again that night, and that he intends to find some time to be alone with her even earlier.

"Hello wife," he says, smiling.

"Good day, husband," she replies.

Behind them, Princess Chang gags and Lady Yao says in a low voice, "I do hope that you do not intend to greet your mother and sister in the same manner."

The emperor laughs, his gaze and hands still holding Lan Fan close. Then he says, "Only this one from whom we have been parted for too long. In fact, we have come to steal her from you for we cannot work without her beside us."

The princess gags some more and the lady scoffs, "I doubt that you will do any work if you have her with you."

The emperor grins at that, unabashed and says, "Perhaps not, but we will be working. We have a guest who is under the impression that we are a young fool absolutely besotted by our beautiful new wife. We think that we should not disabuse him of that notion, but instead parade her before him to convince him of it. He should let his guard down enough after that he will be completely stunned when we strip him of his stolen wealth. We absolutely detest cheats."

He takes Lan Fan's flesh hand and kisses each of her fingers. They still carry the scent of gunpowder, from her morning in the armoury before Lady Yao summoned her for tea, just under that of the automail and perfumed oils they bathe her with. He had told her once that he loved that scent of explosives on her more than any perfume they can find for he has known her by it for so long that he misses it when it is gone. And there was the fact that no one can train the warrior out of the girl, no matter how changed her circumstances.

Lady Yao clears her throat then and says, "I do not think this is wise. If your enemies think that she is your weakness, they will not hesitate to threaten her to get to you."

"Foolish of them then, Lan Fan was an imperial bodyguard. They'd probably be dead before they finished speaking," says the emperor.

"And what of those who the threat of violence will not cower? You have no heir, not even by a concubine and you have been on the throne some five years—"

"I should hope not, my wife would kill me," the emperor cuts in with a grin.

"—so the last thing you should be doing is presenting her to men who may soon come to resent you," finishes Lady Yao.

The emperor shrugs, then turns, pulling Lan Fan with him. As they leave, he says, "He should be more concerned about why we may think it is wise to present her to him."

Lady Yao sighs and decides to try again another day. Someone has to be the voice of reason.


End file.
